Electronic music has come a long way since Thaddeus Cahill began work on an electromechanical instrument, the Telharmonium, in 1898. Ferruccio Busoni in 1907 predicted electrical impulses as the basis for modern music. Luigi Russolo gave noise concerts as early as 1914. One can only imagine the grave-spinning disappointment of these visionaries when the synthesized bleats of disco or the now naïve sounds of such LPs as 1968’s Switched On Bach came about.

The Tierney Sutton Band finds the mystic in the Great American Songbook

By Mel Minter

Gender has nothing to do with cojones. Anybody can have them. Two-time Grammy-nominated vocalist Tierney Sutton has ’em. That’s how she explains her performance of “It’s Only a Paper Moon,” the opening track of her latest, excellent recording, Desire.

Random tracks from Diego E. Montoya, fearless Alibi intern

Diego E. Montoya is a UNM student and Alibi editorial intern. He has a strong affinity for New Mexican music, which he exhibits on some days with sharp boots and a cowboy hat. However, he’s also a fan of the punk rock and has put an interesting spin on this week’s column—all random selections from a Warped Tour playlist. Below you’ll find no accordions, no polka beats and no mustaches.

The Set-Up, the second record from Memphis trio The City Champs, conjures a funky, instrumental, Mid-South-style jazz sound. Hammond organ takes the lead, while guitar and drums provide complementary rhythm. Almost every track runs more than four minutes long but keeps the listener captivated with a jam-session-like flow. The album blends fast- and slow-tempos, mixing boogaloo and Stax-influenced soul jazz.